Ron Rivera has a message to anyone who looks at the NFC East, sees three teams tied for first place with records of 6-7 and scoffs.
“You’ve got nothing to apologize for,’’ Rivera, the head coach of the 13-0 Panthers, said Wednesday. “This is about winning your division. This just happened to be a down year for the NFC East, but a team gets hot and gets on a roll like we did last year, you can make some noise in the playoffs.’’
Rivera knows what he’s talking about. The Panthers finished 7-8-1 last season, winning the NFC South by one-half game.